A Matter of Life and Death
by kou-tora
Summary: While on a recon mission Kid Flash and Robin are trapped, resulting in one of them being severely injured and time slowly running out. Meme Fill
1. Chapter 1

For the Young Justice Anon Meme on LiveJournal. Find the original prompt here _http :/community .livejournal .com/yj_anon_?thread=1267121#t1267121_ (spoilers for upcoming plot in prompt)

* * *

'What did I do to deserve this?' Wally grumbled to himself as he cautiously moved his way through the darkened tunnel of the cave.

"Ow! KF watch where you're stepping!" Robin in front of him hissed, elbowing the speedster in the gut for stepping on his heel.

"Sorry! But seriously dude, did you do something wrong? Did _I _do something wrong? Because this feels more like punishment then a mission, if you ask me."

"I didn't ask you, and no, we didn't do anything wrong. Just because there aren't any bad guys to beat up doesn't mean this isn't important." Robin simply answered as they made their way deeper down the tunnel.

Wally huffed in annoyance, agitated by being in a small confined space. "It's a Bat thing isn't it? That's why we're stuck with the cave, while everyone else got tropical islands and civilization."

"Yeah, it's a _Bat Thing._" Wally could hear the eye-roll behind the sarcasm.

The mission was actually a series of covert recon operations. Batman located a series of abandoned hideouts previously used by the deadly Kobra organization. The objective was to split up, determine if the hideouts are truly abandoned, and scavenge for any usable clues as to their current objectives. The team divided into pairs and were each tasked with a hideout.

"And it's a mine shaft, KF, not a cave." Robin waved his flashlight at the metal support structures that lined the tunnel walls.

"Hrmph. Same thing. It's dark, cramped and smelly." Wally hated caves, or mines, or anything that was small and enclosed. Barely enough room to stand, let alone run. Just his luck he got stuck with the hideout that was apparently an abandoned mine shaft, tucked away in the side of a mountain.

They finally came to end of the path, which opened up to a larger space. A quick glance showed it to be some sort of storage and meeting place, or at least was at one point. Metal beams and electrical wiring lined the rock walls. Random busted crates and smashed equipment littered the floor, but otherwise the space was rather unimpressive. It didn't exactly give of the vibe of an evil organization hideout.

Setting a portable lamp in the middle of the room to give better light, they began searching through the leftovers. "Looks like the snakes cleared out long ago, given the layers of dust and grime in here." Robin coughed as a cloud of dust shook from an overturned table he lifted up to inspect underneath.

Wally pushed open a crate lid, only to immediately jump back with a startled yelp as a rat who'd taken up resident scurried out. "Arrg! I hate this place!" He side-stepped out of the way as two more rats followed the first.

Robin just snickered. "Looks like other vermin moved in." Wally gave him a pointed glare and the finger.

They proceeded to pick their way through the leftover junk, but from the state of what was there, Kobra had taken anything of use with them, and trashed what was left behind.

"Rob, there's nothing here. I say we split already. The stench of this pit is making me nauseous, and I think I just stepped on a cockroach." Wally complained, rubbing the bottom of his boot on the ground, trying to wipe off the bug intestines. Next time they meet Kobra, he'll be giving them an extra beating just for picking this hell-hole.

Robin didn't look up from where he was tinkering with a semi-smashed computer console. "Yeah yeah, princess, one sec. I want to see if I can get anything off this busted computer. Why don't you go outside and radio in with Aqualad, there's no reception in here."

Wally gave a parting wave to his friend's turned back, "Have fun bat boy. I'll just be right outside, enjoying the light of day again." And with that, he sped off through the tunnel and out into the daylight.

Taking a lungful of fresh air, Wally stretched his arms wide and bathed in the sunlight for a moment. "Glorious sun, how long I've missed you."

Pulling out his comm, Wally fiddled with it a moment before dialing in to contact Aqualad. He received only static in reply. "KidFlash to Aqualad, anyone there?" Again, only static. "…Hellooo?" He pulled the comm out of his ear and gave it a few angry taps and shakes, but still only static came through. "Man, I just changed the batteries in this thing too." He hoped Robin's comm worked, or else had a really long walk home.

Wally gave a disgruntled sigh before dashing back into the mine again. He halted partway however when below his feet he felt a sudden rumble. "The hell was that?"

"KF! RUN!"

Wally looked up to see Robin suddenly running in a mad dash down the tunnel way towards him, waving his arms in panic. He opened his mouth to ask what was going on, but didn't get a chance to speak.

Metal snapped and the suffocating earth poured down, as the mountain came down around them.

* * *

This is my first fic for this fandom, so I'm still getting use to the characters.

My KHR readers are probably going to be pissed I haven't updated my other stories, but I can't help it. I looooooooooove this series far too much.

Reviews, as always, are appreciated.


	2. Chapter 2

When Wally came to, the first thing he was aware of was the darkness. Thick, black suffocating darkness. Coughing up the lungful of dirt he had inhaled, he blindly attempted to sit up. His whole body ached and felt heavy. Crawling to his knees reveled he'd been buried under a pile of dirt. He attempted to talk, but his mouth was filled with grit and sand, and he ended up hacking and spitting much of it out before he could even properly move his tongue. "Cough…..ugh….Rob? You ok man?" Absolute silence was the only reply. "Robin?" Wally scrubbed the dirt from his eyes and face, but he couldn't see anything in the darkness. Swallowing the panic that bubbled up in his throat, Wally attempted to calm down before he worked himself into a hysteria. He had to see first before he could find and help his non-responsive comrade. No need to be jumping to worst-case scenarios just yet.

Slowly crawling forward, not particularly feeling like getting to his feet, Wally peeled his goggles from his head, and blindly dusted them off, along with shaking the dirt from his hair. Cautiously feeling them, he was relieved to find them undamaged. Slipping them back on his head, he placed them over his eyes and switched them to night-vision.

His first thought when he saw was remained of the tunnel was 'Trapped'. A small section of the tunnel, no longer then twenty or thirty feet remained partially intact, but on either end from floor to ceiling the tunnel way had completely filled in with piles of rocks and metal beams. 'Oh god…. a cave-in.' Other piles of dirt and rocks partially filled the tunnel from where they had spilled down from the cracked ceiling. The tiny mineshaft tunnel now felt indefinitely smaller.

"Robin. Come man, answer me." Wally called again, shakily getting to his feet and scanning the area. Clouds of dirt that hung in the air made it hard to see clearly, but he couldn't immediately make out the shape of his friend. Then he heard a weak moan, just the slightest of noise.

"Robin! That you!" Wally spun to the direction of where he thought he heard it, but he saw nothing but rubble. Reaching up to his goggles, he switched them to heat-vision. While he couldn't see much of the room, at least he'd be able to pin-point Robin. 'There!'

He could see it, the warm colors of a heat source in the vague shape of a body, but he could also tell it was underneath something. Switching back to night-vision, he paled when he realized Robin was _under _the giant pile of rocks and metal that blocked the tunnel.

"Oh shit. Shit shit shit shit. Rob! Robin! Come man, talk to me!" Wally half-ran half-stumbled over to the rock pile, and immediately began moving rocks and broken beams aside. Another moan alerted him that Robin was close. Clearing out a metal beam reveled a small pocket of space beneath the pile, and Robin. Just one arm and his head, faced down and turned slightly to the side, was visible.

"Rob! Oh god, Rob, talk to me, please! Come on man, wake up!" Wally frantically cleared out some more smaller rocks away from his head and shoulders. Another moan, and a slight twitch of a hand. "That's it buddy, come on, wake up. I gotta dig you out of there." Wally held Robin's hand in his, feeling the thin pulse with his fingers. A confirmation of life. Using his other hand he brushed the dirt from Robin's hair and felt for any wounds.

Robin gave a few shaky coughs that rattled deep within his chest. "Wal-?"

"Yeah man, I'm here. Don't try to move yet, just catch your breath." Wally could tell behind Robin's mask he was attempting to see where he was, but given the lack of light, he wouldn't be able to. "There was a cave-in. The whole tunnel's blocked off."

Robin released a weak breath, and Wally could feel that the boy was shaking slightly. "Fuck…there was…a booby trap. Accidentally tripped it…. Must have been set to bring the whole place down." Well, that explained what caused the cave-in. Damn Kobras.

"Doesn't matter right now. First we've got to get you out of there. Can you tell me what hurts?" Wally surveyed the rubble that surrounded Robin, trying to determine the best way to dig him out without bringing the whole pile down on top of them. "I can't see beyond your shoulders. Can you move your legs?"

"Everything hurts." Robin huffed in a weak attempt at humor. His winced harshly as he attempted to move and gave out a small cry.

"What! What is it? What's wrong?" Wally crouched down next to his friend, frantically trying to see in the dim light.

"I can move …one of my legs…a little bit. But…." Robin trailed off, he eyes screwed shut in pain.

"Hold on, hold on. Don't move, just take it easy." Wally knelled down low, and attempted to see what was causing his friend pain. Using both the limited night-vision and touch, he felt along the rubble that covered Robin.

"There's something….I'm pinned…my side…hurts.."

"Ok, just relax. Let me see…" Wally moved to the other side and carefully began removing rocks, being mindful of Robin and to not cause a rockslide. He revealed a metal beam that was across Robin's shoulders, pinning him down, but thankfully not crushing him. A few tugs on the beam proved that it wasn't going to budge. "Hold on a sec. I'm going to switch to heat vision. The heat from your body might warm the rocks around you enough and I might be able to see what else has you pinned." A quick click, and his sight switched to multi-colored swirls of the heat-vision. "Well, thankfully, nothing else big is on top of you, but it's too dense. I can't see your legs."

Just as he was about to switch back to night-vision, he caught a glimpse of something around Robin's right side, behind the beam that pinned him. Something that looked like…liquid…? "Oh shit…"

Switching back to night-vision, Wally lowered himself down next to Robin's side. "Rob, don't move. There's something…"

"I'm not…going anywhere…" Robin just deadpanned, sighing in annoyance. Wally would have laughed, if this wasn't such a serious situation, but he appreciated the attempt at lightening the mood.

Slipping off his glove, Wally pressed his hand under Robin's side, and slid it in between Robin's body and the rubble. He pushed it back, trying to reach up behind the beam that pinned the boy. Then he felt it. Warm liquid..and…

Robin huffed "Hey, don't be…feeling me up when I'm inab-AHH!"

"Oh god, Rob, I'm sorry I'm sorry! It's just that…" Wally pulled his arm out, his fingers sticky with blood. _Robin's blood_.

"Yeah….I felt _that_…" Robin groaned.

Behind the metal bar that pinned Robin to the ground was a long metal spike, impaled deep within his side.

* * *

And the hurt beings. Sorry to those who hate cliffhangers. It might be a continuing trend (because I'm evil like that, hehe)

Thank you all for the comments and reviews!


	3. Chapter 3

Wally crouched next to his best friend, who was currently buried and pinned under a giant mountain of rocks with a metal spike impaled into his side.

"How…bad?" Robin whispered, his voice weak and hoarse. Wally could see that every inch of the boy's body was tensed and shook with pain. He gently took Robin's smaller hand in his, knowing the boy couldn't see anything, trying to comfort him in any way he could. Wally licked his chapped lips, trying to find the right words.

"It's… a piece of metal, no wider then my finger" Wally placed his finger in Robin's palm, trying to give him a visual through touch. "but, it's long," Wally pressed his finger into Robin's thin wrist, and then slowly dragged it up his arm. "and the wound…felt deep." He then gripped Robin's hand with his own. "I don't...I don't think I can pull it out." Wally's voice tapered off into a whisper. He felt just as weak and helpless as his trapped friend.

Robin squeezed his hand, a silent thanks for the comfort. "Worry about it…later." He whispers.

"Rob, what can I do? I can't just _leave _you there." Wally's thoughts are swirling with what to do and how to do it, but their options are limited and time is even less. "I don't want to attempt to dig you out. The debris is pretty loose, and anything could set off another rockslide." He's trying not to panic. He has to stay calm and be in control. Because his best friend is trapped and in pain, and Wally would give anything to switch places right now.

Robin, as if sensing his friend's near mental panic attack, had already thought of the next best solution. "See if you can…reach my utility belt." Robin winces as he stretches his arms out as far and straight and _careful _as possible. He can't move his right arm as far as the left, because it pulls the muscles that remind him of the spike sticking into his side.

"Are you sure? I'm not sure if I could reach it…" Wally knew there was a bit of wiggle room, but any sort of pressure or movement on Robin would jostle the metal spike even further.

Robin weakly nodded. "If you can get it…..it would help…._a lot_."

"Alright… but tell me the _second _it hurts." Wally flattened himself out on Robin's left side, gently shifting away the smaller rocks he could move, and sneaking his hand in between the small space between Robin's body and the debris. He felt muscles tense at the touch, but Robin didn't say anything. Finally, after a bit of wiggling, Wally felt the belt with his finger tips. "Heh, good thing your such a midget." He laughed.

"I'd hit you right now… if I could." Robin growled, but Wally could hear the bit of humor in his voice. "Buckle's in the front."

"Yeah, yeah I know. Can you lift your hips at all?" Wally had to first unbuckle the belt before he could pull it out.

Robin grunted and sucked in a harsh breath, but was able to minimally move his hips, just enough for Wally to rotate the belt around so he could get to the buckle. "Typically….dinner and a date… comes first." He hissed out with a laugh.

Wally couldn't help but snort. "Don't worry, your virtue is safe. I'd rather not incur the wrath of Batman, thank you very much." He liked living too much. "Dammit, how do you get this thing - Oh wait, got it!" Wally carefully slid the belt out from the rubble, checking it over for any damages.

"Oh thank god." Robin sighed in relief, his body going limp. "Now…take out what's in the fifth pocket from the end."

Wally does so, a little excited that he was granted a chance to dig through the notorious utility belt, though he wished it was under better circumstances. He pulls out a small unlabeled bottle and a device that turned out to be a collapsible jet injector for medication. "Got it."

"Good. Now load up the syringe and …inject it into my arm."

"What is this?" Wally held up the bottle, trying to determine what it was. He trusted Robin, but he had to know what it was before he started shooting up his friend with unknown drugs.

"Painkillers. Only enough to last a short while… but…" Robin's voice wheezes through the pain, but it's enough to convince Wally. He loaded up the injector and moved to roll up the sleeve of Robin's costume, pressing the tip against his skin. A slight hiss is heard when them medicine is administered, and almost immediately Robin gives a sigh of relief.

"Any better?"

Robin nodded "Oooh. _Much_." His voice is stronger and a bit more at ease. "I can finally think clearly again." They both knew it was only a temporary fix though. Robin needed serious medical attention, and fast. "Ok, now…in one of the middle pockets are glow sticks. I'd like to be able to see again,". Now that the medication was kicking in, Robin was able relax and breath a bit better, even if he was still incapacitated.

Wally starts digging through random pockets, trying to find the glow sticks without cutting off his fingers on hidden batarangs. "Dude, you've got like pockets inside of pockets." Wally often questioned the physics and logic on how so much stuff could fit into so little pockets. "Oh, here they are."

He grabs three and bends them, cracking the liquid inside and shakes them to start the glow. He hands one to Robin, and tosses the other two down the tunnel, illuminating the small area of open space for the first time.

Robin, after taking a moment to survey their situation, lets out a long breath. Wally secretly hopes it's not a sign of defeat. "Fuck." Robin breathes.

"Ditto" Wally sighs in return. "What now?" He hopes Robin has a plan, because currently, Wally was out of ideas.

Robin takes a minute before asking "Did you reach Aqualad?"

Wally shakes his head. "My comm is busted, or there was no signal. All I got was static."

"Fuck" Robin sighs again. He flicks on his wrist computers, but they might have been damaged. The holographic screen flickers weakly. Robin types on the keys for a short bit, but soon gives up and shuts it off. "We're too far into the mountain. No signal."

Not good. Not good _at all_.

Wally suddenly felt the reality of the small space they were currently trapped in. The low ceiling and narrow walls and everything was suffocating. He suddenly couldn't get enough air, his chest heaving with each short breath. He had to get out. He couldn't stay here any longer. This isn't how it was suppose to be.

"Wally, you need to calm down." Said Robin, who noticed his friend's distress.

Wally stood up and frantically began pacing "Calm down? Calm down! I case you haven't noticed, we're trapped under a freaking mountain! No food, no water. No way of contacting anyone for help! Now is not the time to be calming down, Rob!" .

"Wally!" Robin reached out the best he could for his friend, but Wally was already moving away, running over to the opposite end of the enclosure, where he frantically began digging at the pile of rubble.

"No! No! I've got to get out of here. This can't be it. I can't die here. Won't die here. No, no!" He dug furiously at the pile of rocks that blocked their only exit, with his bare hands.

"Wally look out!" Robin's frantic calls snapped Wally out of his hysteria, just in time to notice his digging had caused the rock pile to loosen, sending a fresh wave of debris sliding down like a mini avalanche. Wally dashed out of the way, running back over to Robin, and watched as the small dent he'd made while digging be filled in.

Wally stood, panting hard. His breath then hitched, and shuttered. He suddenly dropped to his knees, his body slumping in exhaustion and defeat. Glancing at his best friend, who looked pale and infinitely fragile, Wally let the hopelessness of their situation take hold. There was no way out. No way to call for help. Wally knew he should stay positive, at the very least for Robin's sake, but at this moment, he felt like he could cry out of frustration and fear.

"I don't know what to do…" He whispered, voice broken in defeat.

* * *

A/N: Meh, don't really like this part too much. Trying to put them into a really hopeless situation, but getting all the technical details and having them going through the motions of trying to escape is tedious.  
Angst coming up next, so that should be interesting. Maybe half way there? (Assuming I stop adding to the plot...)

Thanks for all the reviews everyone! Your support is really encouraging.


End file.
